RELATE: Just Jesus and Family

John and Angela have been pastors for 25 years and John has been a corporate chaplain and chaplain coach with Marketplace Chaplains USA for the last 11 years. RELATE Church is their passion and they sense it is a small part of something big that God is doing in our nation.

RELATE isn't just our name; it is bigger than that. RELATE is an acronym that teaches us how to have Biblical relationships with God, each other, and our daily connections. We have seen marriages get better, people get promotions at work, and even parenting skills improve for those who use it. RELATE has built a strong church family that enjoys freedom from church politics and religious elites.

Simply put, RELATE is about Jesus and family, with one mission: to learn and practice the way of love. RELATE is a God-given family of your choice. We may not be a thrill-ride church, but we are a place to call home where you can belong. We love, we serve, we give, and live... really live. Plan your visit with us this Sunday.

Sunday--When and Where

Relationships God's Way

"I didn't understand what it meant to apply the RELATE approach to a difficult situation at first. But, it sank in quickly. The idea that my blaming someone else for my negative emotions simply gives that person more control over me is overwhelming and refreshing at the same time. I love how simply starting at the RE-ROUTE MY THINKING step can help me immensely. ELEVATING the other person in my thoughts can be challenging; but remembering that God loves us all is a good place to start. LISTING MY (and the other person's) THREATS has helped me find new compassion in old relationships. To ADMIT MY PART is often the most difficult step... sometimes my part is huge. At other times I am simply acting on incorrect information or choosing to not forgive. TURNING FROM MY SIN requires that I look at myself with truth... as a sinner saved by grace, just like everyone else, so I don't feel so alone or hopeless. ENLISTING ACCOUNTABILITY is the long-term relationship between me and another person who is trying to RELATE!" (Church Member)

RELATE: Learning and practicing how to do relationships God’s way, even if no one else is. This is our way of putting relationships first in our church, homes, and individual lives. Haven't you sensed something is missing in modern church? RELATE brings what Jesus had in mind on the cross to reality in our lives. Join us and learn the way of love!

Small/Home Groups

Call or text (214) 733-3069 for information and directions.

Sundays after church: Students 7th grade - college.

Tuesdays: Men's Bible Study and Breakfast.

Tuesdays: Home group.

Thursdays: Home group (adults and children together).

Our small groups are about growing relationships with each
other and being a part of continued personal growth in our relationship with
God. Jesus did His ministry in a small group, and His ministry continues
through that first small group to this day. Invest your life into a
commitment to others. We look forward to getting to know you!

About RELATE Church

About our Pastors

Psalm 22:10 "...since the moment of birth you've been my God." This call and God's promise to never leave them is the driving force behind John and Angela's ministry.

John was at youth camp when he was 14 years old when he sensed a strong call from God to enter the ministry. He went home and sat down at the kitchen table with his mom and shared the encounter with God that he had that week. She began to tell him the story. This was a moment she had anticipated for years.

John was born two months premature. His lungs were underdeveloped along with other complications and he had very little chance to live. The doctor spoke to the family and explained that John didn’t have a chance of surviving without a blood transfusion. While this grieving mother prayed, she heard God speak to her heart: "Your son will be a minister of My Word." She kept hearing this inner voice over and over in her spirit and knew God was doing something. Minutes later the doctor came with this report, "We don’t know what just happened, but your baby is showing improvement and he doesn’t even need a blood transfusion!"

Through the years, John prepared himself for ministry and graduated from Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. Angela also has experienced God’s call upon her life. She grew up in a pastor’s home, and she has always been active in ministry. She also has her BA degree in business from National Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri.

John and Angela began their ministry in 1993 by serving as Youth Pastors for 2 years. From 1995 to 2005 they served as Senior Associate Pastors at The Rock Church in Oklahoma City. In November 2005, they moved with their four children to Frisco, Texas to begin a church plant: Alter Church of Frisco. After building a strong foundation and developing a personal discipleship and relationship building process called RELATE, the Alter Church family is now RELATE Church.

John has been involved in missions trips to Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and Mexico. Along with being the pastor of RELATE Church, he is currently a chaplain at multiple locations throughout the Dallas Metroplex, and is the author of the devotional book Feeling Good About Life (Tate Publishing).

John and Angela recognize that their primary responsibility in God's Kingdom is nurturing their marriage and family. They have four children: John Michael, Laura Ashley, James-David, and Emma-Grace.

About our Volunteer Coordinators

RELATE Church has a vision to get as many people involved in ministry as possible. As the church grows we aspire to have Volunteer Coordinators who develop our people to do the ministry. We believe everyone is called to ministry, and we are going to staff the church with that perspective--paid and volunteer workers. To date we have one couple that has risen to this level of ministry, and we look forward to seeing others pursue their life's mission with us.

Jerry and Carole have served Alter Church, and now RELATE Church as full-time volunteers since September 2006. Their primary role is to help people get involved in ministry as the church grows. Currently Jerry also serves by directing the worship team and Carole oversees the nursery. We encourage you to read their amazing story of faith, sacrifice, and commitment to God and this church for which we are eternally grateful.

Jerry and Carole's Story

Jerry and Carole are John's parents. Jerry retired from Chrysler in 1999. They expected to live the rest of their lives enjoying the beautiful property they acquired in the rolling country hills just outside of St. Louis, Missouri. With acreage, a pond, a new barn, pool table, great fishing spots, a big garden, and close family in the area, they were ready for retirement and enjoying it. They had also bought a travel trailer and started camping at the lake as often as they wanted, living the fun life of retirement and relaxation.

One Sunday they were at church and there was a guest speaker that day. During the altar service, Jerry and Carole were praying in the altar area when she (the guest speaker) came to them and started praying. She then told them something they weren't expecting to hear. She said, "God has told me that you are going to be doing ministry in some sort of a travel trailer or an RV. Do you have one?" They were amazed at the idea and assumed God was calling them to find ways to minister when they were at the lake.

So the next visit to the lake they began inviting other campers to join them around the campfire for singing. Jerry would play the guitar and they would sing worship songs together. They never dreamed there might be more to that prophecy than that. John and Angela moved to Frisco in November 2005 to start planting Alter Church, which is now RELATE church. The following September, Jerry and Carole came to visit them and God began to speak to them about bringing their travel trailer and staying for a month to help. So they did. They came for a month and stayed. Since then, they upgraded 5th wheels until they finally built a home here and sold their home in Missouri. They are living their true dream...one they never knew they had.

God has provided for them and continues to validate their lives of faith and sacrifice. Thanks for the great story Jerry and Carole! We love and appreciate you!

Our Purpose

Growing relationships with God and people... bringing salvation to all.

Questions That Guide Us To This Purpose

How does God live His life and love it?

Can I live and love my life like God does?

What kind of church did Jesus envision while hanging on the cross?

Can we be the church He envisioned on the cross?

RELATE Church is a family of diverse people from various cultures, races, and social and religious backgrounds. We accept and respect God and people just as they are.

RELATE life is all about people establishing a relationship with the God of the Bible and living it out with His followers and our community. It's a life-altering environment with people who are encouraging and patient with one another as we strive to accommodate for God and each other in our lives. Everything is about relationship.

Our conduct as Christians isn't based on social or religious dos and don'ts. We view God's commandments as His boundaries for us to have a relationship with Him and with others. If you are interested in growing in a relationship with the God of the Bible, then RELATE will be a refreshing place for you to live, love, and be involved in God's family. It's about relationship, not perfection or pretense. Not man power, but God's presence.

RELATE is a place where you can let others know you... the real you... and they won't run. We'll be your best friends if you let us. Come and enjoy being a part of this loving family. We can't wait to meet you.

Requirement for Ministry: Must be growing in a relationship with the God of the Bible and His people. We have a strict screening process for those who work with children and youth. We encourage people to get involved with doing what God gifted them to do. It's an environment where we believe in people, and where we understand that all of us have our past hurts and struggles to overcome.

Kids

Teaching and helping kids develop values around their relationships with God and people.

What to Expect on a Typical Sunday Morning

Nursery and Kids' Church Serves Ages up to 5th Grade

RELATE Kids' Church: Relate Kid's Church, like all of our small groups, focuses on the wisdom and values outlined by 1 Corinthians chapter 13 (the famous "love" chapter in the Bible). Using the classic challenge of WWJD, kids discuss real life situations and learn to apply love: "How Jesus would love!" Learning the way of LOVE is the goal, because it doesn't come naturally. We recognize that Jesus expressed a desire to be close to the children, and our desire is to help them grow closer to Him.

When you arrive: Come in the North Main Entrance where you will have the opportunity to sign your children into the Kids' area, or keep them with you during the service in the sanctuary. Children above nursery age will join us in the sanctuary during the song service and then go back to the kids church area for their lesson and activities. We do request that if you keep them with you in our sanctuary that you are mindful that someone may be with us today ready to make life changing decisions. Any one of our ushers or greeters can assist you to find a place where you will be comfortable.

Children who have been/are ill: If your child has been ill in the last 24 hours, we do request that you keep them with you in the sanctuary. Our parents need assurance that when they drop their children off we have provided a safe and healthy environment as much as possible.

Approved Kids' Workers: You can rest assured we have done our due diligence in providing the best of care for your children with ladies.

Students

Our youth ministry gives students the opportunity to get involved and embrace adult responsibilities. From building the PowerPoint and running the sound booth to teaching kids and leading worship, they are involved.

We Believe

If it's in the Bible, we believe it, with no extremes.

Salvation

Salvation happens when a person confesses and repents of their sin and accepts Jesus as their Lord and Savior (Matt. 3:2; Jn. 3:16; Lk. 24:47). We call it being saved. We are saved from God’s eternal judgment by entering into a covenant relationship with Him through Jesus. It isn’t just praying a prayer to ask God to forgive you. It’s more than that. When you and I stand before God, and we will, it will be about our relationship with Him and how we lived it out with others. Did we enter into a good relationship with God (Matt. 7:23)? The evidence of salvation is then found in how we live, and how we relate with others (Gal. 5:22-23). Jesus said to love God, and love people (Mk. 12:30-31). If we can't love people we can see and touch, how can we begin to believe we truly love God (1 Jn. 4:20)?

Sin

God didn't just make a list of things that are fun and call them sin. All of His commands have to deal with one thing--relationships. God calls certain behaviors sin because it damages relationships. Anything bringing damage to or distance in my relationships with God and/or people--can only mean one thing: Someone participated in sin. Exodus 20 records the big 10 commandments where God established the boundaries of having a relationship with Him. He made it clear that to have a relationship with Him we must respect Him and worship Him only. And we must treat others with respect, honor, and love--not killing, stealing or coveting their stuff. Jesus summed all the commands up with: Love God, and love people, "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matt. 22:37-40). We must learn how to maintain long-term relationships with people and God. When I do something to hurt those relationships, it's sin. When they hurt me and I flippantly throw those relationships out without the possibility of reconciliation, it's sin. When I hurt someone or do something to harm the relationship, I need to do what I can to repair it and make things right (Matt. 5:23-24). When someone else hurts me, or distances themselves from me, I need to forgive them and keep my heart open for them to come back and reconcile the relationship. Otherwise, I have participated in sin (Matt. 18:21-35).

Repentance

Repentance to God is not only turning away from my sin, but it is also actively making things right with those my sin has hurt (Matt. 5:23-24). It is me saying the same thing about my sin that those affected by it are saying, and doing my best to go back and fix it. If it was stealing, repay them more than you stole. If it was slander, go and tell the people the truth about the person you lied about (Luke 19:1-9).

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is commanded by God. No matter what someone does to us, we have to forgive them and give them over to God. God says, "Vengeance is Mine..." (Rom. 12:19). In other words, when we forgive them we are letting God deal with it. We are saying, God, I trust you to take care of them. And if that means they eventually connect their lives with you, I'm good with that. God demands that we trust Him with what happens. Furthermore, you don't wait for them to ask for forgiveness. Whoever taught us that asking for forgiveness was a sign of humility missed it--big time! Asking for forgiveness is asking for more! It's offensive and most likely they are just asking for permission to do it again. So don't wait for them to ask for it--do it in your own heart and soul. Release them to God and get on with your life in peace and joy.

Forgiving them is between you and God. You forgiving them releases God to deal with them based upon how they handle their sin (Rom. 12:19). God says to release it to Him...trust it to Him...He's a perfect and just God. Forgiveness does not mean the relationship is reconciled (see below). It just means you and God are good, and your heart is free from bitterness and hate. God takes His own advice on this one too. God has already forgiven us through Jesus Christ's sacrifice. So He isn't sitting on the throne frustrated and angry because of our sin. He has released us to whatever destiny we choose for eternity--Heaven or Hell. Now that forgiveness is taken care of, it's about whether or not we reconcile our relationship with Him. That comes through repentance, accepting Him for Who He is, and growing in a relationship with Him (Lk. 13:22-28).

Reconciliation

Two keys must be turned for reconciliation in a relationship. One person holds the key of forgiveness, and the other repentance. One without the other never works. You can declare that you have forgiven them on CNN in front of the whole world, but without their repentance it's a waste of extreme goodwill. Or if the one in the wrong decides to truly repent, that is, to make things right...but the victim nurses the grudge and never forgives--reconciliation is not possible. Reconciliation can happen, but only with both keys: forgiveness and repentance.

Sacraments

Water Baptism: Following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new believer is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized in water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (see Matt. 28:19; Acts 2:38). Water Baptism is a great moment for every believer to create a new memory in people's minds about them. It's a tool God gave us to show and tell those we have hurt, and those we love that this is a new beginning in our lives.

The Lord’s Supper: A time of communion in the presence of God when the symbolic elements of bread and grape juice (the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ) are taken in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. (See Matt. 26:26-29; Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12,36-38; 10:47,48; 1 Cor. 10:16; 11:23-26). We observe open communion in our services (meaning all are welcome to participate; not just our members).

Other

Some of the other doctrines we adhere to:

Healing (physical and spiritual).

The Trinity (Including the work and power of the Holy Spirit in our lives as seen in the book of Acts).

The Rapture of the Church.

The Second Coming of Christ.

We Value

If it's in the Bible, we believe it, with no extremes.

We value people: Not buildings or programs—people matter to God.
We value kids: Letting kids see a God of peace, love, and joy—and providing an incredible God experience for life-long worship.
We value growth: Helping you get to whatever the next level in your life is.
We value connection: Focusing on issues and things that unite us, not that divide us.
We value Truth: Looking past feelings, philosophy, and man-made theology,to embrace Truth.
We value relevance: Not just teaching about God, but answering the how-tos.
We value new beginnings: Marking the wisdom of the past, and beginning again today.
We value peace: A church environment free of politics and human power.
We value God’s presence: Connecting God to every moment in our lives.
We value creativity: Same message—relevant methods.
We value the Bible: Any translation or paraphrase that takes us closer to God.
We value prayer: Connecting with God all day, every day.
We value strength: No whining around here. Get glad the same way you got mad.
We value community: No island mentality. Each of us affect our community.
We value your ministry: God’s purpose for your life to be realized.

Our Mission

Growing relationships with God and people...bringing salvation to all.

As a corporate chaplain serving more than 2,000 employees at businesses all around the Dallas area, John is head-deep in the storms of life with people of nearly every age, religion, social status, and background. Jesus came to alter the lives of everyone He touched by giving them Truth, real answers, and demonstrating what genuine relationships look like. Moreover, He came to provide access to God without it being about religious ceremonies and man-power. Jesus had a church in mind when He was on the cross. What did that church look like? He called it His Bride. Even more personal, His body...the body of Christ.... Our mission is to form a local body that exemplifies what Jesus desired the church to be--and then we will start more churches with this DNA. Every life needs altered. And modern church can certainly use a fresh reminder that our Leader was born in a stable and humbly rode into Jerusalem on a donkey...and He washed His disciples' feet.

So what specific differences would a person notice during a visit to RELATE Church? Here are a few:

We believe people want to give.
So we don't get up and compel them or manipulate them to give. The box is in the back of the worship center at the entrance/exit. Give to your heart's desire and sacrificially. No major spiels are made about it every Sunday.

Salvation is about having true relationships with God through Jesus Christ, and people (see We Believe).
It's not about crying for forgiveness or us trying to make you feel guilty. It's about the fact that we are all sinners and we need encouragement to connect our sin with God.

We stress the need to learn how to have long-term relationships with people--especially God's people.
Deciding to be a person who forgives and knows how to reconcile relationships. We don't adhere to the modern concept that my sin is between God and me alone. Sin is sin because it hurt someone...whereas, I need to go and help the person my sin hurt and make it right with them.

We don't hide our sin--well, most of the time...
We are a family. And we confess our sins to one another, and still love each other. There's nothing better than having the opportunity to love someone who just confessed their sin to you or the feeling of being loved by someone who knows the real you and all your failures. It's amazing!

Our pastor is touchable.
We don't follow a celebrity or a wanna-be. He doesn't dress like Hollywood, and doesn't preach with a preacher's voice. He knows what it's like to have his car break down, his children fighting in the store, and to come to church with a dirty old car. He knows how to change his own brakes, oil, stretch a penny, and how to make use of whatever is at hand. What you see is what you get. Feel free to call them today at (214) 733-3069.

Our doctrine doesn't have any gaping, annoying, unexplainable, divisive holes in it.
Every church seems to have at least one extreme position on something that defines them, or connects them with a denomination. Our extreme position, the one defining thing we stand strong on, is that it is all about relationships: relationships with God and people. This interpretation of Scripture seems to leave no gaping holes in our doctrine in any way. It bypasses the Arminian, Calvinism, once saved always saved, and other huge debates that leave people frustrated. The questions are: Do you accept God for who He is, do you want a growing relationship with Him, and are you learning to love people and have long-term relationships?

We have unholy people doing ministry and know it.
The truth is, every church has unholy people filling every position--because they are all people...even the pastor. The only requirement for ministry (except with children and youth) is that the person is growing in their relationship with the God of the Bible. We are responsible to have strong enough relationships with each other to know that each of us are growing, encouraging one another on to good deeds. It is only through Jesus are we made righteous.

Messages

Beginning January 27, 2019, click a message link to play the sermon using the podbean.com audio widget. For sermons before January 27, 2019, click a message link to play the sermon using the sermon.net audio widget.
Click a presentation link to view the presentation version of the message at prezi.com.
Click a PDF link to download and/or view the PDF version of the message.

Let's Pray Together

Let us pray for you and with you or for someone you are concerned about.

Prayer is God's way of connecting man's will with His will...so that His will can be done. God wants good things in your life—prayer allows that to come to pass. We have people who pray together throughout the week that would love to believe with you for your miracle today.

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